Posted on 07/31/2017 7:59:53 AM PDT by Salvation
There is a tendency today to forget that Heaven is an acquired taste; not everyone wants what God offers. While everyone wants to be happy, often happiness is conceived of in an egocentric way. Heaven is thought of as a personally designed paradise where we will be happy on our own terms.
But that is not what Heaven is. Heaven is the Kingdom of God in all its fullness. Its values and qualities are manifold but include many things that are not immediately desirable to those who live with hearts and minds that are worldly and sinful. The Kingdom of God features ideas that are often unpopular: love of one’s enemies, generosity, love of the poor, and chastity. Heaven features God and His teachings at the center, not me and what I think. Yes, Heaven is a place where every aspect of God’s law is perfectly manifested. Yet many find some of these things not only undesirable but downright obnoxious; some even call them hateful and intolerant. To those in darkness, the light seems harsh.
Yes, Heaven is an acquired taste. This helps to explain that the existence of Hell is not due to a “mean” God trying to remove people whom He doesn’t like from His presence. It is a respectful acceptance by God of the free decision made by those who do not want what He is offering. They do not want to think differently or even be told what to think. They do not want to give up their favorite sins or have their hearts purified of unruly or disordered appetites. In the end, God will not force us to love what and whom He loves. He will not force us to live in His Kingdom.
In his book The Great Divorce, C.S. Lewis makes this very point. In it, many people come to “tour” Heaven, some of whom do not like what they find. Some struggle to adjust, others are resentful and say, in effect, “No thanks.” If you have not read it, I strongly encourage you to do so; it is an important book to read and ponder.
In yesterday’s Gospel, the Lord inquires after our hearts by giving us the images of buried treasure and a pearl of great price. The one who finds them goes and sells all he has in order to obtain them. Does this describe your heart? Does it describe the hearts of our family, friends, and compatriots? Often, the answer is no. Most people are not will to give up everything for the Kingdom of Heaven. Our hearts are disordered. We easily desire things that are sinful and harmful, and not so much those that are good, holy, and lasting. We prefer apparent goods to true goods. If we are faithful, the Lord can get us to that disposition of heart—but it takes time. At least grant Him your willingness to get to that place!
In yesterday’s Gospel the Lord also speaks of a dragnet. While he uses it as an image for the final judgment, that final judgement ultimately depends on the myriad judgments we make in our daily life. As you haul the net of your life ashore, what do you keep, finding it valuable, and what do you discard? Do you value what God is offering and retain it or do you more highly value other things in the net? What do you keep and what do you discard? The answers to questions like these points to your place in the net at the last judgment. God will gather into His Kingdom those who have desired it, not those who have rejected it.
Give the Lord your heart. Open when He knocks. Let Him create a desire in you for the very things He is offering. In the end, Heaven is an acquired taste, more so than we commonly imagine. Let God give you a taste for better and higher things.
This song says, “I’m trying to make heaven my home!”
Monsignor Pope Ping!
Get a copy of C. S. Lewis' "The Great Divorce" and read it. Read it several times.
I think it may be his greatest book.
Books. Books and cats.
I just reread it a couple of times this summer. Good as ever!
Unfortunately, I don't know Sarah Smith of Golders Green. Wish I did . . .
He is right. If we do not want to worship and serve our gracious Creator here, we won’t want to do so there. (Love the video.)
I know Sarah. Her real name is Marilyn, and she’s from a small town in Kansas.
I also know several people like that guy would couldn’t stand the fact that a “worse” person was forgiven.
You forgot wine!
Good point, but that goes without saying because it’s in the Bible. The books and cats are more dubious.
The people that shuns Gods Laws now will be excluded from Heaven of their own accord then.
Pie. And coffee. To go with the books.
If you want to walk with God in eternity, you can walk with him now. If you don’t want to walk with him now, you won’t be very happy walking with him for all eternity.
Truth well expressed.
Oddly enough, in "Anne of Green Gables" there's a type that would fit in Lewis' book - the young girl who has given her whole life to flirtation and frivolity, suddenly struck down by consumption - "I know I'll go to heaven, I'm a church member, but -- it's not what I've been used to . . . "
Ruby Gillis.
I have a Ruby who is just as frivolous, but then she's a high-bred Labrador Retriever so she is excused.
L.M. Montgomery could do a very affecting death scene. I’m sure your Ruby is beautiful. The thing about Ruby Gillis is that, although she flirted with and accepted compliments from several men, she wasn’t promiscuous, as many an ordinary young woman is today.
The same. I hope to meet many reading friends in the Big Eternal Library, and authors, some of whom I will give a piece of my mind, if that’s a thing there.
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